Truck Accident Lawyer

Truck Accident Lawyer | Austin, Texas

A tractor trailer accident often involves serious injury or death. When 80,000 pounds of steel smashes into smaller cars, trucks, motorcycles, or even SUV’s, the big rig usually comes out the winner. If you’ve been hurt in a tractor trailer accident it is important to contact us immediately! Get an AustinTruck Accident Lawyer fighting for you right now!

More and more tractor trailers operate on the roads today than any time in history. With our increasingly congested highways, it only makes sense there is a greater potential for accidents. This is especially true in Austin. Austin has grown rapidly and our roadways simply can’t safely handle the volume of traffic we see on a typical day. When you add never-ending construction zones to the mix, the problems only get worse.

When big rigs drive in congested construction zones the the drivers have even more complicated driving tasks to contend against. With narrower lanes, traffic re-routing, and uneven surfaces, tractor trailer drivers have to keep a careful eye on surrounding vehicles. When you add suddenly slowed or stopped traffic you have a recipe for disaster.

Tractor Accident statistics

There are approximately 14,000,000 commercial vehicles licensed to drive on US roadways any given year. This includes commercial freight vehicles, tractor-trailers and single-unit trucks. That is a lot of trucks hurtling down the highways at high speeds.

Within the last few years alone, there were over 196,000 large truck crashes yearly, representing over 4,400 fatalities, 137,000 non-fatal crashes and 55,000 injury crashes. Interestingly enough, most of the fatal accidents involving large trucks took place during the week in rural areas during daylight hours when visibility was at its best. Unfortunately, these accidents involving large trucks usually also resulted in fatal multiple-vehicle crashes.

Large truck accidents happen for a variety of reasons. Some of the most common reasons tractor trailer crashes happen include failure to yield, speeding, driving too fast for conditions, and inattention. Additionally, tractor trailer drivers have a higher responsibility to get off the roadways during inclement weather than private car drivers. In fact, the federal safety regulations prohibit them from driving when weather or roadway conditions make it unsafe to do so.

Proving liability in Truck Accidents

As any Austin Truck Accident Lawyer can attest, these cases can be difficult cases to prove. Insurance companies for the big trucking companies often hire an Accident Reconstructionist and/or investigator while the truck is still at the scene of the accident in the most serious accidents. This gives them a huge advantage by the time you even think of hiring a lawyer. They have collected data, spoken to witnesses and police officers, and often begin forming their version of how the truck accident happened while you’re still lying in a hospital bed.

If you have been involved in a truck accident the first thing you should do is contact us right now and get an Austin Truck Accident Lawyer working for you! We document the scene and inspect the vehicles before crucial evidence is lost. Even if the vehicles have been towed from the scene we can often still usually find scuffmarks, skidmarks, or other evidence at the scene that can become critical as your case makes it way through the court system. But, that physical evidence begins to be brushed away by weather and traffic almost immediately. The sooner we can start collecting evidence, the more evidence we will have to prove your case.

We also need to start preserving evidence in the hands of the trucking company or their insurance company. Federal regulations limit how long trucking companies have to hold onto certain documents that can help us prove the driver drove too many hours, had a history of negligent driving, or other evidence of negligence. If we don’t start preserving this evidence immediately it could be gone by the time we try to prove our case to a jury.

Austin Truck Accident Lawyer – Proving Damages

A truck accidentcan leave your physical health and financial well being in ruins. Even people who feel fine, may suffer from “hidden injuries” that do not surface for days, weeks or months. We have handled cases for clients who didn’t know they had bulging discs in their neck or back until months after the accident. That can lead to insurance companies for the big rig companies denying your claim. They often say your bulging disc is not related to the accident. Our Austin Truck Accident Lawyer knows how to handle these defenses.

First, we work with doctors, physical therapists, and other medical professions that know how to explain to a jury how your condition was caused by the truck accident. Jurors are smart people, and it’s important to give them a firm understanding of the dynamic trauma your body went through when you were hit by a tractor trailer.

Secondly, we work with you to carefully document the changes in your life style before and after the truck accident. Many people with hidden injuries tell us they didn’t realize they were hurt until they could no longer do some of the activities they used to enjoy. By documenting these changes in lifestyle we can show the jury how the truck accident impacted your life.

Financial Damages

On top of the physical pain and injuries, you may be out of work for weeks, months, or lose your job altogether. Even if you keep your job, you may have several doctor appointments that require you take time off work. This can lead to lost income, out-of-pocket expenses, and financial hardship. We will help you navigate the complex medical and financial damages we need to prove so the insurance company or jury understands what is fair compensation for your injuries.

Austin Truck Accident Lawyer Summary

Truck accidents are complicated cases. They require skilled legal and expert knowledge to gather the facts that will best help you get the full amount of money you deserve for your injuries. The sooner we start working on your case, the better are chances are of proving the negligence of the truck driver. We do this by: